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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25372840">I Didn't Know I Married a Seal: Tales From a Stressed-out Aquarium Worker</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiloueka/pseuds/Kiloueka'>Kiloueka</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>NieR: Automata (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Aquariums, F/F, Hamrammr, Kitsune, Modern Era, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Seals (Animals), Selkie - Freeform, Selkies, Strangers to Lovers, Swan Maiden, Urban Fantasy, Werewolves, tanukis</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 10:07:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,733</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25372840</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiloueka/pseuds/Kiloueka</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>9S is a mid 20’s aquarium worker who specializes in marine animal rehabilitation. One day, while tending to the plethora of orphaned marine mammals, <i>they</i> come across a strange woman attempting to escape a pen that housed an ornery injured seal. The seal in question is nowhere to be found. After a short chase and whirlwind of events, 9S discovers that the woman, named 2B, <i>is</i>, the seal in question.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>2B &amp; 6O (NieR: Automata), 2B/9S (NieR: Automata), 6O &amp; 9S (NieR: Automata), Jackass/The Commander (NieR: Automata)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>I Didn't Know I Married a Seal: Tales From a Stressed-out Aquarium Worker</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I've been sitting on this for a while because I didn't get much reception when I posted a summary on tumblr to gauge interest. But because I'm a petty bitch I'm gonna upload it now.</p>
<p>I made 9S nonbinary and use they/them exclusively because I wanted to. Deal with it.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>    The sun had barely peeked over the misty hills that surrounded the sprawling aquarium. The scent of fish and kelp and salt was thick in the air. It was strong enough in the early morning to make people pause and reconsider even going inside, but the enormous banners displaying the brightest fishes from all over the world along with the promise of state-of-the-art air filtration systems drew them in any way. </p>
<p>    The filters (as well as dry floors, comfy chairs, and fresh, cold water on demand), however, were a luxury only afforded to the <em> esteemed </em>guests in the main aquarium. Well, they and their screaming children, who ran around to bang on whatever small animal enclosure the frazzled staff had unfortunately turned away from. </p>
<p>    The back area, which took up well over half of the aquarium, was home to another set of equally frazzled staff, injured wildlife, and the endless supply of food carefully grown and processed in the facility itself. The thick air permeated through the halls; even the manager’s office, which had never once held even the smallest cup of ocean water, was still infused with the scent of the sea.</p>
<p>    The aquarium’s newest hiree dug through a massive pile of one of the few types of food the facility was unable to raise themselves: anchovies. Their oversized lavender raincoat protected them from the brunt of any fishy splashback and their wave-patterned name tag—although a bit grimy—was displayed proudly on their chest. It read:</p>
<p>YoRHa No. 9 Type S</p>
<p>Animal Curator/Veterinarian </p>
<p>They/Them</p>
<p>   </p>
<p>9S handpicked the most delicious-looking silvery fish (or at least what they thought would be the tastiest for the twenty-or-so orphaned and injured mammals they were tasked to medicate and feed) and deposited them into several carefully-labeled buckets arranged on a rolling cart.</p>
<p>    They cringed as a stream of fish viscera squirted on their face and into their short, black hair as they shoved a pill into its opened belly. They wiped their cheek on the shoulder of their raincoat but the slick nylon only served to smear the fish paste around even more.</p>
<p>    <em> Yuck. </em> They crinkled their nose and squeezed their dark green eyes almost shut before sighing and continuing. <em> That’s just how it be I guess. </em></p>
<p>    After the fish were packed with the proper dosages of medicine and vitamins, 9S cleaned up and wheeled the cart out into the long hallway. They took a deep breath of the cleaner air and power-walked down the dim hall lined with photos of sea life and cork message boards covered from top to bottom in various notices, images, and safety precautions. A few large, black mats covered the floor as 9S neared the recovery pens.</p>
<p>    As they reached the first room and its moderately rusted metal doors, they peeked in the small window and did a quick headcount of the five all-too-skinny sea lion pups. Three of them were blissfully frolicking in the small pool, seemingly unconcerned about the worrying state of the ocean that led them to be confined there in the first place. The other two lay listlessly on the ground, huddled up against each other in the back corner. 9S’s smile faded slightly and they quickly donned their mask as they hoisted the largest bucket from the cart and slipped inside.</p>
<p>    “Good morning my little babies; have you all grown in the night?” they said in a sing-song voice, smiling as they fished through the bucket for the right foods. “Good morning Sausage Roll.” They tossed a fish to the largest baby, who was already clambering up out of the pool to the bucket. “Good morning Bacon Bits. Good morning Hot Dog. Good morning Beef Stroganoff. Aaand <em> good morning </em> Lil’ Cthulhu.” The smallest two pups let out some huffy grunts as 9S approached them. </p>
<p>The barely-weaned pups eyed 9S with both curiosity and caution as they distributed the vitamin-infused fish. 9S held a squeegee steady in one hand, ready to gently poke at Sausage Roll whenever she tried to snatch a morsel from one of the smaller ones. 9S’s smile widened as the two tired pups ravenously scarfed down their helpings; it was a huge improvement from the day before when they only sluggishly picked at a few fish at a time.</p>
<p>9S took down some notes and measurements as the pups finished off their meal, then slipped out and marked the clipboard hanging on the door before moving onto the next room. Even though the harbor seal pups, Morton, Wendy, Iggy, Ludwig, and Roy were noticeably better off than their sea lion counterparts, they still demanded just as much care and attention from 9S. </p>
<p>As 9S moved onto the next pool, they stopped at the seaside pen and peered inside, clutching the bandages on their sore forearm. Instead of a fully enclosed pool and concrete walls surrounding the room, this one simply had a fenced-in area leading directly to the ocean; the fence extended ten feet up into the air and was tipped with barbed wire (which was added less to keep the critters <em> in </em> and more to keep people <em> out </em> ). It was an auxiliary pen reserved for the ornery seals who didn’t get along well with others, or as 9S called it, <em> seal prison </em>.</p>
<p>They peered inside only to see the current pinniped prisoner already glaring back at them from the rear of the pen. She was an injured adult with a nasty neck and flipper wound so she didn’t have a fancy name like Captain Laser or Pizza Pie, only a short designation glued to her head with a piece of plastic: B2. </p>
<p>    “<em> B2, more like Bowser 2.” </em> They recalled the joke they cracked to a handful of older staff members. None of them laughed. Just the memory made 9S cringe almost as hard as they did the day it happened so they retreated from the window and moved to the next pen. <em> At least the kids that named the baby seals got the reference. </em></p>
<p>    “I’ll deal with you later,” they muttered, gripping their arm and shaking their head clear.</p>
<p>    They handled the next three pens without an issue. As dire as the situation many of the orphans were in when they arrived, most were responding really well to the nearly round-the-clock care they were receiving. The single elephant seal pup had nearly doubled his weight since he arrived not long ago. The two orphaned otters were taking well to their surrogate mother Silky who was unreleasable because of her missing back paw. Even the newest baby otters—who were currently being tended to by another staff member much to 9S’s dismay—were gaining weight and becoming much more lively.</p>
<p>    As 9S finished up the final room of sea lion pups, they slipped out and looked to the one remaining bucket, sighing. Just the one ornery seal left to feed before break. They looked into the otter room to see their coworker still doting on the newborns. He was busy grooming one’s fur with a special comb while wearing a full-body black outfit that looked like a discount radiation suit. The others rolled around playfully in the bed of fake kelp in the shallow pool, waiting for their turns with the bottle or brush. </p>
<p>    <em> Guess it’s just up to me now, </em>9S shrugged and scooped up the bucket and a nearby squeegee and approached the seal prison. They took a deep breath and opened the door, food in hand, and ultimate defensive tool in the other. </p>
<p>    “And how are you doing my fat little ba—” </p>
<p>    The pen was empty. The little orange tag <em> B2 </em>was bobbing in the water but there was no seal to be found.</p>
<p>    9S’s mouth went dry. They dropped the bucket in the doorway and rushed inside, ripping off their mask and casting it aside.</p>
<p>    <em> It’s fine, she’s just underwater right now, </em>they thought to themself as they leaned over the edge of the pool, flinching as they put pressure on their injured arm. </p>
<p>    Empty.</p>
<p>    <em> Oh no. </em></p>
<p>“Shit,” they hissed. “Shit, how? But there’s no way…” their voice trailed off. They jumped to their feet and searched for any holes in the pool.</p>
<p>    Nothing.</p>
<p>    As they frantically looked around the enclosure, a small clinking noise behind them caught their attention. They whipped around to meet the gaze of a tall, dark-skinned woman clinging halfway up the ten-foot fence. She was completely frozen save for the fluttering of what looked like a large, silvery, spotted seal pelt—which matched her short, wet, messy hair—dangling from her jaws.</p>
<p>    Her dark, narrowed eyes pierced right through 9S, practically freezing them in place as they quickly realized the most alarming thing about her.</p>
<p>    <em> Good grief, she’s naked! </em></p>
<p>    9S’s mouth fell open; a small squeak escaped them as they stumbled backward against the wall, hand shooting up to cover their eyes.</p>
<p>    “Wh-who are you?!” they stammered, spreading their fingers just enough to see her face. </p>
<p>    The woman didn’t answer and stayed glued to her spot. Her dark eyes flicked from 9S to the door and back several times. They followed her gaze to see the door was still wide open, the bucket of fish acting like some kind of smelly doorstop. </p>
<p>    “You’re not supposed to be here,” 9S said a bit more clearly They stood up a little straighter, but all the woman had to do was adjust her foothold slightly and 9S immediately shrunk back down.<br/>
    <em> Oh gods she let the seal out, didn’t she? Shit, what do I do?  </em></p>
<p>9S’s mind raced as they went through their options. Tackling her was out of the question; even if she wasn’t completely nude she was easily twice their size and could probably flatten them with little effort if they tried to restrain her. They shuddered at the thought and glanced at the door again. <em> If I could just get out and lock her in until… </em>They slowly shifted themself in the direction of the exit.</p>
<p>    “Where’s my seal?” 9S prepared to run. “You’re not with the Gre—ack!” They screamed as the woman suddenly leaped off the fence and charged at them. She shoved them to the floor, landing hard and just barely avoiding cracking their skull open. Head spinning, they scrambled up as the woman bolted through the door. She tripped and stumbled over the bucket, sending freshly-thawed fish sliding across the floor. The moment she regained her balance, though, she charged down the hall, limping, seal pelt clutched close to her chest.</p>
<p>    “Wait, stop!” they screamed as they pulled themself up and chased after her. They slipped and slid on the fishy floor and only barely managed to regain their balance before picking up speed. They caught sight of a large gash on the back of her neck with what looked like ripped stitching attempting to hold it together. </p>
<p>    As the woman neared the doors to the main aquarium, a trash cart rolled out from the adjacent hallway guided by the aquarium’s head janitor, Jackass. The equally feral-looking, but thankfully fully-clothed employee, stopped in her tracks as she caught sight of the woman. Her baggy blue pants, greasy brown hair, and a dozen bottles of cleaning fluid all swayed forward with momentum.</p>
<p>    “Stop her!” 9S screamed. The woman picked up the pace but Jackass was quicker; she shoved the cart in her path and the intruder collided with it. She toppled over, arms flailing and pelt flapping and crashed to the ground face-first as trash and spray bottles scattered in every direction. She hissed and kicked the cart in Jackass’s direction but the scruffy janitor hopped over it with little effort, hooked an arm under the woman’s midsection, and hoisted her up.</p>
<p>    “Let me go shit bird!” she screamed in a rough voice with an accent 9S couldn’t quite place. She bit down onto Jackass’s arm, but the royal blue jacket she wore was too thick to tear through. Jackass flinched but held steady as she leaned up to the woman’s ear, whispering something too low for 9S to hear.</p>
<p>    The woman immediately ceased struggling and released her bite. Her head snapped in Jackass’s direction and met her gaze with narrowed eyes, their faces close enough to kiss. She hissed something back and stood up as the janitor let go of her, holding the pelt tightly to her chest. </p>
<p>    9S skidded to a halt a few feet away, hand still over their eyes with just enough space to see where they were going.</p>
<p>    “9S, come here,” Jackass demanded and motioned them over. 9S let out a squeak and obeyed, staggering forward, head still spinning.</p>
<p>    “Coat,” she snapped, holding her arm out at 9S and gesturing. 9S quickly shuffled out of the thick raincoat and handed it to her. Jackass snatched it and threw it around the woman. The small gust of wind it created blew the strong scent of fish, blood, and some other foul odor right into 9S’s face and they almost gagged. </p>
<p>    “Put your arms through the holes,” Jackass ordered.</p>
<p>    “I know how clothes work,” the woman snapped back and punched her right arm through the left sleeve. She made a grunt of indignation as she struggled with the orientation until Jackass sighed and snatched it back and helped her put it on correctly. The entire time she refused to let go of the pelt, even going so far as to try to put both her arm and the fur through a sleeve but gave up with a growl and passed it to her other hand.</p>
<p>    Just as she finished buttoning up—and at exactly the same time—the doors to the main aquarium behind Jackass and the door to the supply closet off to the right of the group were flung open. The aquarium’s general manager, White, stepped out of the closet just as a docent—followed closely by a large handful of visitors—walked through the double doors.</p>
<p>    The docent gasped as he saw the mess. 9S craned their neck and recognized one of their roommates, 32S. They gave him a strained smile but his attention was already turned to the strange woman, who was now standing in a fighting pose—fists raised, body tensed, and pelt dangling. A flash of recognition crossed his face. He turned to the curious tourists and quickly shut the door behind him.</p>
<p>    9S heard his muffled voice ushering the guests into a different direction just as White reached the three of them. Strands of her thick, wavy hair pointed in every direction and the shock of perfectly white hair that grew from her forehead was curled and bouncing in front of her face. Her plain white shirt was more ruffled than 9S had ever seen before and was missing her name tag.</p>
<p>    “What the hell is going on here?” she demanded, gripping the handle of her koa cane tightly enough to turn her normally dark knuckles almost white.</p>
<p>    The intruder looked down and away, face pulled tight.</p>
<p>    Jackass spoke up. “We had a pretty seal-ious problem in the auxiliary pen. If you know what I mean.” She failed to hide a smug grin just as 9S failed to stop their eyes from rolling. </p>
<p><em> Seriously? </em>9S suddenly felt as if they aged a whole year after hearing that.</p>
<p>    White sighed and looked to the woman who still refused to make eye-contact. “B2, right? The one with the neck injury?”</p>
<p>    Jackass nodded. “9S here fou—“ Her words were cut off by the loud vibrating of White’s phone. The manager fished around her deep pockets and pulled it out, her eyes widening as she read the number.</p>
<p>    “Aye kanapapiki,” she hissed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She pointed her phone at 9S. “You two, get to my office and wait for me. Jack, you make sure they both make it and then go <em> clean up. </em>” White narrowed her eyes and nodded to the trash and then to the hall behind 9S.</p>
<p>    “Aye, aye cap’n,” Jackass said. White sighed and answered the call, walking stiffly back down from where she came from as fast as she could, her cane clicking against the hard floor and echoing against the yellowed walls.</p>
<p>    9S was only able to catch the first few pleasantries before Jackass ushered them off in the opposite direction toward White’s office. The strange woman didn’t budge and continued to eye the nearby exits.</p>
<p>    “Don’t even think about it,” Jackass growled quietly. “If you want this to go smoothly, do <em> exactly </em> as you’re told. Now come.” She grabbed 9S’s arm and practically dragged them down the hallway. They stumbled, and quickly looked between the two women, wondering why she grabbed <em> them </em>and not the intruder.</p>
<p>    The woman gritted her teeth and hissed, but quickly adjusted the coat and stiffly walked after them. </p>
<p>    “C-can someone <em> please </em>tell me what’s going on already?” 9S squeaked as they neared the door.</p>
<p>    Neither of them answered, which only caused 9S’s apprehension to increase even more. Jackass pulled out a massive ring of keys from one of the bottomless pockets of her baggy jeans. She immediately flipped to a worn, brass key and quickly shuffled the two in the room as soon as it was unlocked. She shut them in and turned to them.</p>
<p>    “Okay, listen here,” she shook her keys at them, the harsh sound causing 9S to flinch away from her. Jackass looked at the offending keys, quickly pocketed them, and pointed her finger at the woman. “I don’t know what you were thinking, trying to do that, but you’ve created a lot of work for all of us.”</p>
<p>    9S shrank back more, unsure if Jackass was directing that at both of them or not. The woman puffed up and stood taller. She opened her mouth but Jackass cut her off.</p>
<p>    “If you don’t want us to have to call the cops you’re going to have to do whatever White tells you.” She pointed in the general direction of the manager. “And 9S?” She turned to them.</p>
<p>    “Ah, y-yes?” they stammered, still tense and shaking.</p>
<p>    “Not a peep of this to anyone.” She made a zipping motion over her lips. “After this is over, take her to your supervisor’s place straight away.”</p>
<p>    “Wha—Okay but can you please—”</p>
<p>    “Whitey will fill the rest in; you’re on your own until then. I have to go clean up. Have fun!” She slipped out the door before 9S had a chance to react. They heard the jingling of keys and scratching of metal on metal, and their stomach twisted even more.</p>
<p>    “Wait don’t lock me in with...” 9S yelled but their cries went unanswered as Jackass’s heavy footsteps faded into the distance. “...her,” they finished, heart thundering louder than their faint voice. They turned to the woman who was already staring at them suspiciously, nose slightly turned up, fingers curled tightly around the sealskin. </p>
<p>    <em> I’m going to die. </em>They quickly looked down at their own scrawny, short body and the bandages wrapped tightly around the bite on their arm, then back up to the chubby, muscled woman that was easily a foot taller than them. Their eyes wandered back up to her soft face and they blushed and looked away. </p>
<p><em> If she decides to crush my head between her thighs that might not be a bad way to go at least. </em>Their face grew hot and they faked a coughing fit until they could compose themself just a bit more. They stopped, took a deep breath, turned to the woman and smiled.</p>
<p>    “Hi, I’m 9S.” They held their hand out to her. She stared at it for a moment, then at 9S’s face. Their hand began to tremble a bit more, so they slowly withdrew and clutched it against their stomach before backing into the furthest of the two office chairs. They sank into the scratchy, fraying, brown cushions and unconsciously began to twist back and forth slightly.</p>
<p>    “Do you want to sit down?” 9S motioned to the other worn chair a few feet away. Her eyes followed 9S’s gesture to the seat then back to them. Slowly she made her way to the chair and sat down, planting her feet flat on the ground and balling the pelt up in her lap and hugging it close to her. She absentmindedly stroked the soft fur that looked too real and alive to be some crusty old seal pelt stolen from the aquarium’s history exhibit. </p>
<p>    The two sat in tense silence for a while as the woman continued to watch 9S like a hawk. The hair on their neck bristled as she stared and their mind filled with a billion questions and conversation starters. Questions about the pelt and where the hell it came from, about why the hell she was there, about why the hell she was there <em> completely nude. </em>Finally, they coughed and blurted out the first thing that was clear enough to say:</p>
<p>    “Can I ask what happened to your neck and leg? It’s not makeup is it?” 9S asked, immediately flinching. <em> Idiot. Of course it’s not makeup, </em>they chastised themself as the potent tang of iron, fish, and salt continued assaulting their senses.</p>
<p>    “No,” she responded flatly. </p>
<p>    “Are you—” they gulped, “she has some towels in here somewhere. I can grab one for you if you want to wipe yourself down.”</p>
<p>    She continued to stare at 9S then touched the back of her leg. “Okay,” she finally nodded. </p>
<p>    9S gave a half-smile and stood up, looking around the small room for the towels. The whole thing was a complete mess; papers were strewn everywhere, a tall, rusted metal bookshelf lined the wall behind the woman. It was filled with books turned every which way and folders stuffed to the brim with colorful papers and sticky notes as well as a few knick-knacks from all over the place. </p>
<p>    Nothing there. </p>
<p>    9S looked to the back wall. It was devoid of any storage furniture but did sport a collage of pictures of released animals and aquarium residents as well as letters and drawings from local school children thanking the aquarium for tours. The largest picture—yet furthest away and almost hidden out of sight—was a photo of young White and Jackass standing together in a field surrounded by dozens of palm trees and plumerias. They wore flowery shirts that were mostly concealed by several enormous, intricate leis. Jackass was sporting the widest grin 9S had ever seen; her arm was wrapped around White’s neck, pulling her down to the same height and squishing their cheeks together. White simply looked at her with a tired smile. It was admittedly the cleanest picture of Jackass 9S’s ever seen, her hair was quite a bit longer, washed, braided, and laced with flowers. </p>
<p>    The adjacent wall had several old file cabinets lined up against it (likely holding even more clutter). An old hat hand-woven from palm fronds sat atop the tallest one. </p>
<p>    A smaller cubby sat next to the door and housed several rain boots, a spare change of clothes, and <em> towels </em>. 9S lit up and grabbed two of the plain white, yet stained, towels from the top of the pile. They handed them to the woman and she took them and hastily wrapped them around her leg and neck. </p>
<p>    “Thanks,” she muttered after a long silence, avoiding eye contact with 9S.</p>
<p>    9S smiled and nodded and opened their mouth to respond but the telltale signs of their manager’s cane and shuffling footsteps caught their attention. They let out a stiff breath and turned their attention to the door. The woman bristled and stared as well, sitting still and tense.</p>
<p>    The handle turned and White pulled the door open without first unlocking it. </p>
<p>    <em> Wait… didn’t Jackass...are you serious? </em>9S’s nose crinkled for a brief moment but turned their attention back to White as she scooted around them and sat down in her chair across the messy desk. She grabbed a large water bottle at the edge of it and took a long sip from the straw before nearly slamming it down in front of her and sighing loudly, causing both 9S and the woman to flinch.</p>
<p>    “What the hell were you thinking?” White asked harshly, frowning; the wrinkles on her forehead deepened as if the whole ordeal suddenly aged her another ten years.</p>
<p>    No reply. The woman eyed the small window overlooking the ocean, just barely large enough to fit her head through. She huffed and pulled the pelt closer to her chest.</p>
<p>    White sighed again. “Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused us with your little stunt?”</p>
<p>    No reply. 9S stared at a tiny purple crab that had somehow made its way in the room to poke around in the cheap plastic trash can. The woman looked down at her leg and squeezed at the towel. Faint spots of blood had already leaked through it. She let part of the pelt fall over her leg, concealing it.</p>
<p>    “I was just talking to security; they already saw the whole fiasco on the cameras. Do you have any idea how much work I have to do now to clean this up?”</p>
<p>    No reply. The woman picked at the dirt under her chewed-up fingernails. 9S considered grabbing the crab and tossing it back outside but the fear of moving from their spot and bringing attention to themself overpowered that urge. So they kept still and let their gaze wander around the small room, occasionally glancing back at the two other occupants for the briefest of moments.</p>
<p>    White growled. “Are you not from this area? We’ve had ambassadors go up and down the coast multiple times warning about this.”</p>
<p>    The woman growled.</p>
<p>    <em> Ambassadors? What the hell? </em>9S looked to White and pleaded with their eyes for some sort of clarification. But none came. White took another long sip from the bottle and let out a stiff breath.</p>
<p>    “Look, I understand this is very stressful for you but I’m trying to help you. But in order for me to do that, you’re going to have to answer my questions.”</p>
<p>    The woman growled then shot a glance at 9S. They felt the hair on the back of their neck stand right back up.</p>
<p>    White followed her gaze and shook her head. “The damage is already done, it’s best to keep 9S here and to keep anyone else from getting involved. Plus, the <em> locals </em>have been discussing selecting them as a candidate for some time now. It seems this whole thing is just speeding up the process.”</p>
<p>    “Damage? <em> Candidate? </em>” 9S squeaked. “Ma'am, please, I have no idea what is going on right now but I just want you to know I had nothing to do with any of this. I just—”</p>
<p>    “I know, 9S.” White tapped her hand on the desk, gaze softening just a bit. She took another sip of water before continuing. “Dr. Fiorone is better at handling this… situation than I am. Go to her immediately after I release you and she’ll give you the answers you need when you get there.”</p>
<p>    <em> But I want answers now. </em> “Okay,” they said in a shaky voice. They began to pick at the stuffing coming out of one of the chair’s arms while trying to ignore the piercing glare of the woman.</p>
<p>    The intruder spoke up. “I won’t talk until you get rid of...” she squinted at 9S before pointing and grunting while looking White directly in her brown eyes. 9S bit their lip and folded in on themself, turning away from the both of them so only their side was visible. They really wished they still had their raincoat.</p>
<p>    White’s phone buzzed. She picked it up and her face lit up just a bit and she released some tension in her shoulders.</p>
<p>“All right, Jackass and 32S have done what they can to clear things up with security and the tourists, respectively. Jackass’s on her way back. 9S,” she sighed, “go wait out in the hallway. I hope I can trust you to keep quiet on this, or do I need to take your phone?” She tilted her head and looked intensely at them while tapping a finger on her own phone. </p>
<p>“No ma’am.” 9S shook their head and stood up stiffly. <em> I’m pretty sure that’s not even legal. </em>They shuffled out of the room and closed the door quietly behind them.</p>
<p><em> What the hell? What the hell? What the absolute hell is happening? </em>They squeezed their eyes shut and took several deep breaths before turning to a nearby bench.</p>
<p><em> Don’t say anything, </em> they thought in a voice that mocked White’s. <em> The hell am I supposed to say anyway? ‘Hey guys just got assaulted by a naked feral woman and got trapped in a room with her and my manager while she said some cryptic shit.’ </em>They shook their head and flopped down on the rickety seat that looked older than the aquarium itself. </p>
<p>They absentmindedly reached for their phone but the moment their fingers touched the case, they stopped. They sighed harshly, sat up straight, and shut their eyes tightly.</p>
<p><em> It’s fine, </em> they told themself, <em> just breathe. </em></p>
<p>They took a few deep breaths, but the pins and needles that plagued their entire body refused to cease. It was as if a thousand angry bees were buzzing around in their chest. A feeling all too familiar to 9S, but still endlessly frustrating. </p>
<p>Heavy footsteps from down the hall broke 9S from their trance. They unconsciously wiped their eyes and shook their head even though no tears had formed.</p>
<p>Jackass appeared from around the corner, one hand on her trash cart and the other in her pocket. Her sleeve was pulled up to reveal dark bruises in roughly the same place 9S’s own bite was located. She gave 9S a nod and they straightened up as she approached.</p>
<p>“Jackass, can you please tell me what’s going on?” 9S begged before she even reached them. “I feel like I’m in trouble for something but I didn’t do anything and I know White said I didn’t but she was angry and I don’t understand what the hell is going on with that woman and where’s my seal and what the hell did she mean by I’m a candidate and—”</p>
<p>“Whoa, whoa easy there.” Jackass put her hands up and stopped just in front of them. They stood up and met her hazel gaze before quickly looking away and picking at the hem of their shirt. “One question at a time,” she paused, eyes scanning the hall as she fought for words, “Well, actually… look, you’re just gonna have to wait till you’re at 6O’s place for answers. There’s a lot you don’t know, and we were planning on waiting until you were ready to hear it—”</p>
<p>“What do you <em> mean </em> ‘when I’m ready’?” they snapped. “What kind of weird-ass prophecy shit is this? Just <em> tell me what the hell is happening! </em>” They stomped their foot on the ground and let out a growl.</p>
<p>Jackass sighed and dropped her large hand on 9S’s head, ruffling their black, chin-length hair. 9S pulled back and scowled. </p>
<p>“I am <em> not </em> good at this am I?” Jackass lamented. </p>
<p>9S shook their head.</p>
<p>“Look, I am literally unable to tell you this. You’re going to have to talk to 6O or get the answers directly from Little Miss Fugitive over there.”</p>
<p>9S tilted their head. “The hell do you mean?”</p>
<p>“I said what I said,” she shrugged. 9S sighed again and prompted an even bigger sigh from Jackass. She pinched the bridge of her nose and carefully placed a hand on their shoulder. They didn’t pull away this time but eyed her with suspicion. Her hand was frigid enough that they could almost immediately feel it through their thick blue uniform and the smell of cleaning fluids on her cracked, dry hands made their nose crinkle.</p>
<p>Her voice and expression softened. “I know you’re dealing with some shit right now and this is probably—definitely not helping but you just gotta, you know, bear with this for awhile. If I could tell you, I would. I say what’s on my mind, you know me.”</p>
<p><em> I really don’t. </em>“I guess.”</p>
<p>“Anyway, they should be done soon—” As if on queue, the door down the hall clicked and the woman stormed out of White’s office empty-handed and let out a loud, harsh growl as she kicked the wall with all her might. A jolt ran up her spine as her bare foot connected with the concrete with a loud crack and she jumped back yelping. The towel wrapped around her leg fell and drops of blood splattered around.</p>
<p>“Right on time,” Jackass smirked as the woman hopped around on one foot while gripping her injured toes. 9S subconsciously grabbed their own leg and winced.  </p>
<p>“Just take me to this Doctor <em> Florina </em> whatever,” the woman growled at 9S, shaking her leg and tentatively putting it back down on the slippery floor. How she managed to do all that without falling flat on her back astounded them.</p>
<p>“R-right, this way,” they said and began to walk but paused. “Wait,” they turned back to White, who was now leaning against the door frame and looking straight at them. “I’m free to go right?” </p>
<p>White nodded and went back in her office, shutting the door quietly. The woman limped past them, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists. She stopped beside Jackass and gave her the most piercing glare. Jackass looked less than bothered.</p>
<p>“That was quite a bite you gave me,” she waved her arm in the woman’s face, sleeve pulled back to reveal dark, tooth-shaped bruises.</p>
<p>“She took my—” she began, ignoring Jackass’s words. “I’m going to—UGH!” She clenched her fists and bared her teeth.</p>
<p>    “Don’t worry about her too much,” Jackass shrugged, “she can be a stiff hardass sometimes, but she means well. She just…” Jackass paused, scrunching her nose and frowning in a comical way while turning back toward the door. “Never mind. Do you want some shoes? Whitey keeps some extras in her office.”</p>
<p>“I’m fine,” she grunted and turned to 9S. “Let’s go.” She limped down the hallway, blood still dripping from her leg then immediately made a left turn at the fork… right into a dead-end. 9S sighed and ran to catch up, clutching their injured wrist.</p>
<p>
  <em> At least I’m going to finally get some fucking answers.</em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I originally wanted to write this as a piece of "original" fiction to publish but I really don't know now. I'll just upload the first chapter for now and see how well it's received and then figure out what to do from there. If there's anything weird with the names that's because I changed them to normal names and then back to their canon names to post here.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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